NOTE: This message was emailed to team members on Thursday, June 4, from Alan Levine, Ballad Health’s chairman and CEO.
Dear Colleagues,
In May, I had the opportunity to see our workforce in action, participating in the “Walk-a-Mile with a Nurse” tradition and celebrating future healthcare professionals at Signing Day with the second class of the Ballad Health Academy.
This year, we welcomed over 200 new high school students to the Ballad Health Academy program, bringing our total enrollment to more than 500 students across six Tennessee school districts. Supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies, Ballad Health Academy takes an innovative school-within-a-school approach to create accelerated pathways from high school into healthcare careers.
Through the Academy, students aren’t just preparing for careers in healthcare; they are beginning to see a vision for their own futures and how they can give back to the communities they call home. Once they begin their training, many of them will soon spend time on the floor for clinical rotations, participate in educational events, and even learn from our own Nurse Mentors.
I also got a small glimpse of our workforce at its finest during “Walk-a-Mile,” a day when our senior leaders spend time shadowing a frontline nurse in their care environment.
While shadowing Registered Nurse Hannah Henson in Smyth County Community Hospital’s Emergency Department, I was reminded of the hopeful students we signed into the Ballad Health Academy. Just two years after graduating and obtaining her RN, and beginning full-time work on her own, Hannah was confidently training a new hire, demonstrating leadership in her unit.
A sign of a good clinician is when you stop and ask for a second set of eyes to review your case. It’s when you are not afraid to ask for advice. It’s when you trust one another so much you can anticipate your colleague’s next move. I witnessed all of these things with Hannah and the team in the Smyth County Emergency Department.
Hannah has found her place and her purpose. She is made for the emergency department – she is calm, methodical and always on the move, seeing what needs to be done and executing before anyone has to ask. She is local to Smyth County, as are many of her fellow team members, and it was evident that together they shared an incredible pride to serve their hometown. They are proud to work for their hometown hospital.
In a few years, the current Ballad Health Academy students will be graduates and may work on a unit like Hannah’s. They may not only be members of this team, but members of our communities providing care inside and outside the walls of our facilities.
Thank you for continuing to serve others in your work every day. It is an honor to witness our team passing along their gifts and talents to others. Tomorrow’s workforce is bright and we have this team to thank for that vision.
God bless,
Alan
